Illustrations of Universal Progress: A Series of DiscussionsSpencer, Herbert
Philosophy
Illustrations of Universal Progress: A Series of Discussions
Spencer, Herbert
Philosophy; Political science; Science
For when the process of classification has been carried as far as it is
possible for the uncivilized to carry it--when the animal kingdom has been
grouped not merely into quadrupeds, birds, fishes, and insects, but each of
these divided into kinds--when there come to be sub-classes, in each of
which the members differ only as individuals, and not specifically; it is
clear that there must occur a frequent observation of objects which differ
so little as to be indistinguishable. Among several creatures which the
savage has killed and carried home, it must often happen that some one,
which he wished to identify, is so exactly like another that he cannot tell
which is which. Thus, then, there originates the notion of _equality_. The
things which among ourselves are called _equal_--whether lines, angles,
weights, temperatures, sounds or colours--are things which produce in us
sensations that cannot be distinguished from each other. It is true that we
now apply the word _equal_ chiefly to the separate phenomena which objects
exhibit, and not to groups of phenomena; but this limitation of the idea
has evidently arisen by subsequent analysis. And that the notion of
equality did thus originate, will, we think, become obvious on remembering
that as there were no artificial objects from which it could have been
abstracted, it must have been abstracted from natural objects; and that the
various families of the animal kingdom chiefly furnish those natural
objects which display the requisite exactitude of likeness.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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